PRS for Music launches membership Emergency Relief Fund

Money to support songwriters and composers during unprecedented times of hardship

PRS for Music today announced an immediate PRS Emergency Relief Fund to support its members during the Coronavirus pandemic. In partnership with the PRS Members’ Fund and PRS Foundation, the money will be available to PRS members around the world who are facing significant financial pressure as we battle the virus.

The live industry has halted globally, television and film production is on hold and businesses are closing, causing a dramatic reduction in music used. Collectively the livelihoods of creators, many of whom are freelance or small businesses themselves, are at significant risk during this crisis.

While the government has offered assistance to businesses and has promised more targeted measures for freelancers, PRS members are experiencing great hardship right now.

The new fund is open to all PRS members around the world who have been a member for at least two years and earned over £500 in the last two years. Grants will be awarded based on assessment of individual need and applicants will receive support up to a value of £1000.

Establishing this new PRS Fund is part of a wider plan to support members during the coming weeks, with further measures being explored.

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Our members are under threat as many parts of the music scene grind to a halt. They look to PRS for leadership, for support and to be the best and most trusted collecting society in the world. Members need to eat, support their families and pay rents – without industry support the future is challenging during this terrible time. Together we can get through this.

Andrea C. Martin, CEO, PRS for Music

PRS writer members wishing to apply for an Emergency Relief Fund grant can find more details at www.prsformusic.com/ERF

Grant applications will be live from 9am on Thursday 26 March.

Money has been diverted to the PRS Emergency Relief Fund from paused, cancelled or postponed activities. Support has also been identified from the PRS Members’ Fund and PRS Foundation; two organisations with deep experience in helping those starting out in their creative careers and those in need. The scheme will be administered using the PRS Members’ Fund established grants model.

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Never before has there been a greater need for the services the Fund offers. This is what we do for creators every year, and I’m heartened the team at PRS for Music have enabled us to do even more at this unprecedented time.

John Logan, General Secretary, PRS Members’ Fund

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The heightened concern for music creators’ livelihood increases our collective will to work harder and collaborate more to lessen the strain of this global crisis so we can ensure UK talent can thrive in the future.

Joe Frankland, Chief Executive Officer, PRS Foundation

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Andrea, John and Joe and the team have the full support of the PRS Board during this difficult time. Our members have immediate need for assistance and it’s the right thing to do to support them. The music industry must come together to support its future during this period of national crisis.

Nigel Elderton, PRS Chairman and Managing Director/European President of peermusic

Royalty payments to members will be unaffected by the establishment of the PRS Emergency Relief Fund. The entire PRS team is focussed on processing and paying royalties to members as normal. To date, distributions will not be affected, and April’s payment will proceed as usual.

PRS for Music is working in partnership with the wider industry through UK Music to lobby government to further support creators and the creative sector to sustain support over the coming months.

Stay tuned for more….

About PRS for Music

PRS for Music represents the rights of songwriters, composers and music publishers in the UK and around the world. As a membership organisation it works to ensure that creators are paid whenever their musical compositions and songs are streamed, downloaded, broadcast, performed and played in public. In 2019, 18.8 trillion performances of music were reported to PRS for Music with £810.8m collected on behalf of its members, making it one of the world’s leading music collective management organisations.

PRS for Music’s public performance licensing is now carried out on PRS for Music’s behalf by PPL PRS Ltd, the new joint venture between PPL and PRS for Music.

About PRS Foundation

PRS Foundation is the UK's leading charitable funder of new music and talent development. Since 2000 PRS Foundation has given more than £35 million to over 7,300 new music initiatives by awarding grants and leading partnership programmes that support music sector development. Widely respected as an adventurous and proactive funding body, PRS Foundation supports an exceptional range of new music activity – from composer residencies and commissions to a network of talent development partners and showcases in the UK and overseas.

About PRS Members’ Fund

The PRS Members’ Fund supports songwriters, composers and their families in times of need. For over 80 years, thanks to the generosity of supporters, it has been able to provide help to songwriters and composers who are struggling financially, physically or emotionally– whether it be immediate assistance with finances, housing, mental or physical health issues, career advice, counselling, or coaching. In 2019, PRS Members’ Fund awarded 1,198 grants totalling £440,380 to beneficiaries in the UK and beyond. Over the last ten years, the registered charity has awarded £5.1 million in grants and loans. Originally formed in 1934 to support songwriters and composers during the Great Depression, PRS Members’ Fund continues to work closely with its founder, PRS for Music to empower its creative community in times of crisis. Find out more at www.prsmembersfund.com